The Eye of The World: Chapter 5
=Winternight= Synopsis Rand and Tam reach their home late in the afternoon. The sheep are placid, not agitated by an intruder. Tam searches the ground around the house and barn, even tasting the water, before he laughs at his overcaution. Tam goes to start some stew, and Rand does some chores, ending with chopping wood until past twilight. They keep their weapons by them, though. They come inside to eat. Tam locks the door, which is rarely done in the Two Rivers. He goes upstairs, and then Rand hears him dragging something on the floor, like the big chest under his bed. When Tam comes back, he has a sword with herons on it. He says he got it a long time ago, and far away, and Rand's mother was always after him to get rid of it. While Rand is boiling water for tea, they hear a thump on the locked door, and then it is broken in. A huge creature, like a man but with the horns of a ram, is standing in the doorway. Rand hurls the boiling water in the thing's face, and Tam dispatches it with the sword, as well as the one that crowds in behind it. Tam calls for Rand to go hide in the woods, and says he'll follow. Rand dashes off, ashamed to be running. He is about to leave by the back door when he reconsiders and leaves by a window instead, just as something starts pounding at the door. That one breaks open as well, and more figures enter. Rand calls a warning and then runs. He makes for the woods and then doubles back to the barn, grabbing the hoe as a makeshift weapon. Tam leaps out through a window, and tells Rand again to run and hide, while he tries to lead the attackers away from Rand. Rand goes stealthily after, but has lost track of both of them when he is startled by Tam's hand on his wrist. Tam says they are Trollocs. Rand notes that Tam's wounded, but Tam insists that it's just a scratch. Rand notes that Tam feels hot, though. Rand takes the sword and heads back to the house to get Bela and the cart. The house and barn are open, still aglow from the candles. Rand notices that the sheep are silent; the first one he finds is dead. He crawls to the house, finding it smashed up inside but apparently empty. He sees four Trollocs lying still on the floor, and after watching them he goes inside for a waterbag. Once he's inside, one of the Trollocs gets up. Identifying itself as Narg, it tells Rand to put down the sword, that he won't be hurt, that the Myrddraal wants to talk to him. Rand lowers the sword, and Narg charges. Rand brings up the sword just in time, and manages to kill it as it crushes him to the ground. He pushes the thing over and retrieves the sword, then goes to gather what he needs for Tam. Going to the barn, he finds Bela and the cows gone, and the cart around the back, one of the shafts broken off. He cuts off the other shaft, marveling at the keenness of the blade, and returns to Tam. Character List Appearing: *Bela *Narg *Rand al'Thor *Tam al'Thor Mentioned: *Haral Luhhan *Jain Farstrider *Lan Mandragoran *Nynaeve al'Meara *Oren Dautry *Perrin Aybara Terms Mentioned Places *Emond's Field *Two Rivers *Westwood Terms *Aes Sedai *Bel Tine *Coplin *Dark One *Fade *False Dragon *Festival *Heron-mark Blade *Myrddraal *tabac *''The Travels of Jain Farstrider *Trolloc *Winespring Inn *Winternight *Wisdom 01.05